How important is garden visibility from the house?

[Bumblebeemee]

We’re sale agreed on our house for almost 6 weeks and have been unsuccessful twice when bidding on a new property. The market is slow here for what we’re looking for - semi-rural, 4 bed detached with a big garden and ideally no neighbours.

We’ve reluctantly increased our budget and now are stuck between 2 houses. (Which are top of the new budget so may not be successful anyway.)

House 1 - approx 100 years old, detached traditional country cottage, living room, dining room and open plan kitchen/snug. Beautifully maintained, Aga, but smaller overall than the house we’re in. Garden is at the far left side of the house but the only access is from the kitchen to the right of the house, across a small patio at the back and then around the corner to the left of the house. With 2 young kids I don’t know if I’d be happy to not be able to see/hear them from the kitchen, but also wondering how many years this would actually be an issue for? Otherwise house is surrounded by fields but 5 minutes into town.

House 2 - 5 years old, big open plan kitchen/dining/living space with utility room and separate additional living room and office space. Garden to the rear accessed from open plan living space. Otherwise very much new build in appearance, not much in the way of character. Flat lawn to front and back etc. and one neighbour either side. Set on the same busy country road as house 1 but not as private.

My heart wants house 1 for the stunning views and cosy cottage atmosphere. My head says house 2 is more practical for a family with young kids. But I don’t know if I’m being short sighted, we don’t want to move again!

I personally would go for house number 2 for easy access to the garden. Think this would always be important even as the kids get older and you want family bbqs. Do you have to move now? Can’t you wait a few years and get your dream home like no 1?

how old are your DC?
Having had noisy neighbours I would generally say always choose detached. However, with young very children I’d have to say house 1 would be a nightmare. In house 2 you would, in time, be able to send them out whilst you pottered in the house, I’d not feel as comfortable doing that with house 1 when DC were very young.

Personally I'd say a good connection with the garden is important, it's lovely to be able to sit inside and see the garden.

Honestly its pretty low on the list of things I would even think to consider.

Gardens are simply a nice extra (regardless of 'where' they are located), they are the luxury add on not a decision making factor, having the better house matters far more.

Most decent sized houses where I live don't have gardens unless crazy expensive. You choice is a small late 20th century house with garden (the houses just simply aren't big enough for us there about half the size of the older houses) or a large Victorian house with just a small yard. Size and practicality of house always comes first because thats the bit we live in.

Our previous house was a character property with poor connection to the garden due to a long, narrow plot, but I loved it so much and I sorely miss it. Didn't have children then... it wouldn't have been possible for a kid to play in the garden without an adult present there too until about age 6. I thought of it as a secret garden...a bit annoying for outdoor eating mind you, it needed a bit more planning.

Current house has open plan onto garden, and i do now have a DD. But to be honest until recently she has rarely played in the garden while we've been inside because it wasn't secure! I do love to sit and look out at the garden though.

It's a short time you'll have young children, but how long do you plan to stay in the house?

You never own a view, so those fields surrounding house no 1 could become housing at a later date. I would absolutely want to see the garden and keep an eye on the children. I once went for a wee came back and Ds1 was lay flat on the top of that Little Tikes red and yellow car with Ds2 inside riding down the sloped garden.

Also house no 2 sounds like it would grow with you so a separate lounge for the children when they get older. You have to imagine if you get stuck there and cannot move that your children will become adult sized around 13 ish and when they have friends round too it is nice for them to have a child space to make noise and mess in.

The children in our family go in and out to the garden and are outdoors a lot, even though we live in a cold part of the country. This is possible because the kitchen and living-room both have glass doors straight out to the garden which is flat and secure.

Their garden is quite small, but it's the easy access that makes it so beneficial. So house 2 would be the practical option for a young family.

House 2 but how busy is the country rd you are looking at ?

I'd never buy a new(er) build - the newest house we've owned is Victorian - but with very young children I'd definitely be concerned about letting them play in a garden where I couldn't see them.

So, if I were you, I don't think I'd choose either, although I'd be leaning more towards house 1 if the DC aren't too tiny!

At our last house (a 400 year old mill) the garden was half an acre in a very rural location (the two nearest neighbours weren't very near!), but couldn't be accessed from the main living space or the kitchen. We had to go through the dining room, into a lobby with steps up to a pretty, partially roofed, walled courtyard from which a gate led into the half acre garden. Alternatively, you could go out of the front door and turn left into the lower part of the garden. It wasn't suitable for young DC, but ours had already grown up.

For us, it was more about a) our two dogs - we wanted to see what mischief they were making and b) the fact that we created a gorgeous garden that we weren't able to see from inside the house! Ultimately, we built a huge oak framed window overlooking the front garden (which was a pretty cottage type) so at least we could sit inside and see the fruits of our labours.

To answer everyone’s questions:

The DC and 3 and 1, and we would potentially like another in a year or 2 if we can afford to.

Both houses are detached. Our current home is detached and we still have issues with one particular neighbour and we feel we have lost a lot of our privacy and ability to relax here, so the proximity of neighbours is a big factor for us.

Unfortunately it is a bit now or never as we have to apply for DC1’s school place this year and we’ll be moving out of area.

Having a bigger outdoor space is also one of our main reasons for moving so the garden is hugely important. Both DC love to be outdoors and spend a large part of the day outside regardless of weather. We also have a dog who needs a lot of exercise and outdoor time so while it might be low down on the list for some it’s very much a priority for us to have a good garden. There is a patio at the back of house 1 just behind the kitchen so eating outside / barbecues wouldn’t be an issue.

Both houses have 2 separate living rooms so DC would have their own space in future. Both houses are on the same busy country road but house 1 has a small lane that sets it back from the road while house 2 is only separated by the front garden which is open fencing and lawn. We would have to secure the garden and possibly add hedging for noise and privacy. Not a dealbreaker but there is financial cost.

I think house 2 is probably the more practical choice, and I’m glad I don’t seem to be overthinking the access to the garden. I almost wish I’d not seen house 1!